What Matters Most
by irishflute
Summary: Submission for Smythofsky Holidays Week Day 5: The Holiday Season. When Dave's family Christmas doesn't go as planned, Sebastian is there to put him back in the holiday spirit.


**A/N: Submission for Smythofsky Holidays Week Day 5: The Holiday Season. I still don't own Glee.**

**Warnings: Examples of homophobia (on religious grounds), brief language**

"Okay, I've got the lights out of the attic, Dave's brought the ornaments up from the basement, the tree's set up in the stand – let's decorate!" said Paul Karofsky with a grin.

"Aye aye, Captain!" said Dave happily. A seven-foot Frasier Fir stood in the Karofsky's living room. Christmas music was playing softly, and the mood was festive. It was just over a week before Christmas, and the holiday mood was starting to settle over the home.

Things in the Karofsky household had been rather tense since Dave came out the previous spring. While his father had accepted him and supported him completely, his mother still held onto the belief that he could be "cured." Lisa Karofsky usually held her tongue, but Dave often caught her looking at him with disappointment and concern – particularly whenever he mentioned his boyfriend, Sebastian. Tonight, however, was about family, and Dave was hopeful the spirit of Christmas would allow the evening to go smoothly – like before. Putting up the Christmas tree had always been one of their favorite traditions. Perhaps it had the magic to bring the family back together.

For her part, his mother was standing off to the side, a tight smile on her face. She looked slightly uncomfortable, but she was trying. _That had to count for something._ Paul and Dave stood on opposite sides of the tree, passing the roll of lights back and forth, spiraling them down the branches.

"Do these look like they're spaced out right, Lisa?" asked Paul.

She took a step back, looking critically at the tree. "Yes, I think so." She took a deep breath. "So, David, you're supposed to go ice skating with that …" she swallowed, "with Sebastian tomorrow, right?"

Dave blinked in surprise. His mother _never_ brought up Sebastian – especially by name. "Yeah, I am," he said, smiling hopefully at his mom.

Her face looked pained, but she held her smile. "That's nice," she said, almost sounding like she believed it.

"Yeah, it should be a lot of fun," Dave said. "I'm really looking forward to it."

The family was silent for a minute as Dave and his father finished spiraling the lights around the base of the tree. "Okay, looks like we're done with lights!" Paul announced. "Let's plug 'em in and see how it looks!"

Dave pulled the cord over to the outlet a few feet away and plugged it in. The tree lit up with the multicolored-LED lights, looking festive and bright. "Awesome!" Dave grinned. "Now, time for ornaments!"

Paul was already by the ornament bin, pulling out boxes. "Here, Lisa – Dave's first Christmas ornament! Why don't you put this one on the tree?"

Dave's mother froze, but she slowly reached out and took the ornament – a tiny replica of Noah's Ark. She held onto it, standing in front of the tree, as if looking for a place to put the ark. Her face was distressed, and full of conflict. Finally, she turned away from the tree and put the ornament down on the table.

"I – I just can't do it," she sobbed. "How can I stand here and celebrate the birth of Christ when my son – my only son – is so clouded with sin?"

"Dave, get out of the room," his father ordered calmly. "There's no need for you to listen to this."

"But if he doesn't listen, how can he be saved?" cried his mother. "All I want is to see my son in Heaven! Is that really too much to ask?"

Dave stood by the tree, his mouth open in hurt and shock, unable to move. Things had been going so well. What happened? How had he set her off this time? _Just by existing,_ a voice whispered in his head. _You'll never be the straight little boy she wants you to be. You'll always make her cry._ He shoved those thoughts down. They were true – he knew that – but _it wasn't his fault._ He knew that, too. And so did his father, who was heatedly taking up for his son.

"There is nothing wrong with Dave," Paul told his wife with steely determination. "He's just as likely to get into Heaven as the rest of us."

"But he continues to walk in sin! And so do you, by standing by and letting him! It's our job to save him," Lisa urged. "How can we call ourselves good parents if we sit by and allow our son to be doomed to Hell?"

Again, Dave was struck by the level of conviction in his mother's voice. She truly believed everything she spewed. Dave's therapist had been helping him with this – helping him focus on the love and acceptance in Jesus's teachings, showing him that his mother's concern, as misguided as it was, meant she _did_ still love him. Dave hung onto that, blocking his mother's words out of his head. Looking at the ground, he quietly left and headed upstairs to his room. He could still hear the fight raging below him, but he turned up his music and tried not to listen.

He thought about calling Sebastian, but decided against it. He would see his boyfriend tomorrow; that was soon enough. Besides, he knew Sebastian would probably be more upset about the incident than _he_ was. There was no point in worrying him over his mom's outburst tonight.

After a while, he heard a soft knock on his door. He pulled his headphones out and eyed the doorknob nervously. "Come in," he called.

He let out a sigh of relief as his father walked in. Part of him had been hoping it would be his mother, coming in to apologize, but he knew how unlikely that was. His dad was a much safer visitor.

"Hey, kid. How're you doing?" he asked, coming to sit on Dave's bed with him. He looked defeated.

Dave shrugged, putting on a brave face. "All right, I guess."

"Sorry about that," his father sighed. "She – she finally said she was sorry. She stepped out of the house – said she needed some air."

Dave nodded. _She said she was sorry._ That was certainly progress. "So … are we going to finish decorating the tree when she gets back?"

Paul hesitated. "She didn't think she could handle that," he explained reluctantly. "We took it down – it's already out by the curb." He put a hand on Dave's shoulder. "I'm sorry, son. It looks like Christmas is going to be kind of low-key in the Karofsky household this year."

Dave swallowed a lump in his throat. It shouldn't be that big of a deal – it _wasn't_ a big deal. But still. Christmas had always been his favorite time of year. And now … Well. Things change.

"It's okay, Dad," he said. "I understand."

His father pulled him into a hug. "You shouldn't _have_ to understand," he sighed, "but thanks."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

The next morning, Sebastian pulled his silver BMW into Dave's driveway. He glanced at the tall evergreen lying next to the road and furrowed his brow. Dave had told him that he and his family were planning to decorate the tree the night before, but that tree looked decidedly un-decorated. He glanced up and watched Dave as he walked out of the house and let himself in the passenger side.

"So, I'm no expert on this Christmas stuff, but I thought the tree was supposed to go _inside_ the house," he said, raising his eyebrows as he backed out of the driveway.

Dave winced. "Yeah … yeah, it is." He stared wistfully out the window at the sad-looking tree as they drove past.

Sebastian waited a minute for Dave to continue. When his boyfriend remained silent, he decided to probe him further.

"What happened, Dave?" he asked softly.

"It's nothing," Dave tried to brush it off. "We just changed our minds about putting up a tree this year."

"Bullshit," said Sebastian flatly. "I know putting up the tree is a big deal in your family, and I know how excited you were. There's no way you just 'changed your minds' all of a sudden."

Dave continued to stare silently out the window. He sighed. "Mom couldn't handle it," he admitted. "Something about how celebrating Jesus reminded her how her son's going to spend eternity in Hell. I don't know," he mumbled.

Sebastian was seething. "So that's just it? The Grinch threw a fit and cancelled Christmas?"

"Don't call her that, Seb," begged Dave. "She feels really bad, it's just too hard –"

"Too hard for her to love her child and accept him the way he is?" fumed Sebastian. "Christ, my parents are cold and distant, but they'd be that way no matter _who_ I was. This … Fuck, Bear Cub, you shouldn't have to put up with this shit."

Dave gave a small smile. "Thanks, Seb." He shrugged. "Whatever. Maybe she'll be over it by next year."

Sebastian looked over at his boyfriend, his eyes filled with concern. Dave was trying to act like he was over it, but Sebastian could tell just how disappointed he was. He frowned. For Sebastian, Christmas was usually just another day. His parents were almost always out of town – like this year – and the whole "birth-of-Christ" thing never did much for him, so he usually just slept in and treated December 25th the same way he treated all the other days of break. However, he knew how important the holiday was to his boyfriend. If Dave's family wasn't going to give him the Christmas he deserved … Well. Sebastian had a plan.

Reaching the end of the road, Sebastian turned left. "Um, Sebastian?" Dave said, looking up in confusion. "The ice skating rink is the other way."

"I know," grinned Sebastian.

"Are you kidnapping me or something? Because I know you think I need to get out of that house sometimes, but I really don't think –"

"Just relax, Bear Cub," Sebastian instructed with a wink. "Trust me on this one."

Dave looked at him dubiously, but didn't argue. "Are you at least going to tell me where you're taking me?"

"Nope! Where's the fun in that?"

Dave rolled his eyes. "Whatever Seb," he laughed. _Good._ Although he was still trying to feign disinterest, Sebastian could tell he was getting excited about this turn of events. He just hoped Dave still liked the idea once he knew what it was.

A few minutes later, Sebastian turned into the parking lot of a Home Depot. Dave looked confused. "We're going to … build something?"

Sebastian snorted. "Can you seriously see me building something?"

"Well, you're the one who drove us to Home Depot," Dave pointed out. "What else can you even do here?"

Sebastian didn't answer as he parked the car and hopped out with a smirk. "You coming, Bear Cub?"

Dave quickly followed Sebastian out of the car and towards the building. Sebastian didn't look back or wait for Dave to catch up – he stayed focused on his destination: the large white tent next to the garden center. He heard Dave's sharp intake of breath as he realized where they were heading, but he didn't pause to see if the reaction was good or bad. He'd find out soon enough; they might as well be inside the tent.

Once inside, Sebastian finally paused, taking a deep breath and enjoying the smell of fresh pine. He turned back to face Dave, whose mouth was open in surprise as he looked around at all the Christmas trees. "So. Pick out one you like."

His head snapped to Sebastian. "We're … we're getting a tree?"

Sebastian nodded. "Yep. And then we're going to bring it back to my place and decorate."

Dave just stared at him for a minute. Sebastian was just about to take it all back – _this was a terrible idea; he hates it. I shouldn't have even brought it up – _when Dave slowly broke into a grin. "Thanks, Seb!" he said. "This is awesome!" He furrowed his brow. "Can you fit a tree in your car, though?"

_Oh. Shit._ Sebastian hadn't thought too far into the logistics of this operation. He quickly considered. "We can fold down the back seat and stick it through the trunk," he said. "That should work, as long as you don't pick a giant one."

"Sweet! Do you have ornaments and stuff, or are we going to buy those, too?"

Sebastian thought about it. He was sure there were Christmas decorations _somewhere_ in his house. After all, his parents brought them out whenever it was their turn to host a Holiday party. However, he wouldn't even know where to begin to look for them. He shrugged. "Let's just buy new ones."

"Your family really doesn't have any special ornaments? Christmas traditions?" asked Dave, taking a step towards Sebastian and putting a hand on his arm.

"Not really," Sebastian shrugged. "You knew that, Dave – Christmas has never been a big deal in the Smythe house."

"Still, though – _nothing?_"

"Nope," said Sebastian. He'd never been bothered by his lack of holiday traditions before – in fact, he'd always thought they were a waste of time. But now, though … Even though his own Christmas traditions were being shattered, Dave was making him feel like they were the most important thing in the world. He pulled his boyfriend close. "Maybe we can start some new traditions together."

Dave grinned. "That sounds dangerously close to holiday spirit _and_ commitment, Seb – all in one breath!" he teased.

Sebastian rolled his shoulders, as if brushing off something uncomfortable. "Well, you know …" he sighed, but smiled. "I guess you're worth it." He smirked. "Now, go pick out a tree before we accidentally start reenacting a Hallmark holiday special."

"Sounds good!" Dave laughed. He took Sebastian's hand and pulled him along as he examined the trees. He kept asking for Sebastian's input – "Do you think this one's full enough? Is the top too angled? Does this one look symmetrical?" – but to Sebastian, they all looked roughly the same. He knew he wasn't much help in the selection process, but it didn't matter. Dave had it under control. Finally, he chose a tree. Sebastian had no idea what type – all he could tell was that it was roughly six feet tall, it was green, and the needles weren't as sharp as some of the trees they'd considered. All that mattered was that Dave was happy.

The bigger boy hoisted the tree and carried it towards the cash register, grinning like a little boy. Sebastian pulled out his wallet and paid, smiling in spite of himself. Getting the tree into the car was a bit of a challenge – _"I'm telling you, Dave, if this thing leaks sap on my seats …"_ – but finally, the tree was loaded.

Sebastian closed the trunk. "Next stop, lights and decorations! Ready to go?"

Dave nodded happily, and Sebastian started to turn back to the car. "Hey, Seb?" Dave called.

"Yeah, Dave?"

"Thank you. This really means a lot to me."

Sebastian walked back over to his boyfriend and pulled him into a soft kiss. "I know. That's why I'm doing it," he smirked. "Why the hell else would I have a six-foot-tall pine tree in my car?"

Dave snorted. "True." He paused. "Seb?"

"Yes, babe?"

"I think this is shaping up to be the best Christmas ever."

Sebastian smiled and squeezed Dave's hand. Maybe this holiday thing wasn't so bad. "Here's to many more."


End file.
